Fordham is the pick to win the Patriot League football title; Lehigh 2nd, Lafayette 3rd in preseason poll

In advance of today's Patriot League football preseason luncheon at Green Pond Country Club, the league office sent out the preseason poll and its preseason all-league team as well as the preseason offensive and defensive players of the year.

Suffice to say it looks like a great fall in the Bronx whether or not the Yankees make the baseball postseason.

And remember, too, that if Lehigh and Lafayette have their way, the league championship will be decided in the Bronx on Nov. 22 and won't necessarily go to the team located in the Bronx, Fordham.

In case you're not aware -- Lehigh and Lafayette will be playing at Yankee Stadium on Nov. 22. It's the 150th meeting in college football's most-played rivalry.

Lehigh has run out of tickets for meeting No. 150 vs. Lafayette at Yankee Stadium

We're just a few days into summer, but anticipation has already reached fever pitch for one of the fall's biggest sporting events.

The 150th meeting between the Lehigh and Lafayette football teams, set for 3:30 p.m. on Nov. 22 at Yankee Stadium, has drawn an incredible amount of interest and will attract what will easily be the biggest crowd in the history of college football's most-played rivalry.

Lehigh put out on a release on Wednesday saying that it has sold out its allotment of nearly 28,000 tickets.

Seating capacity for Yankee Stadium for football is projected to be 48,100. In addition to the ticket allocations for Lehigh and Lafayette, the Yankees organization has also allocated tickets to corporate affiliates and staff associated with the stadium and team operations.

Lafayette also does not have any tickets available for public sale.

Here's the complete release from Lehigh:

BETHLEHEM, Pa. – The 150th meeting of college football's most-played rivalry is now just 150 days away and on Wednesday, Lehigh Athletics has announced it is sold out of its ticket allotment for the highly anticipated clash with rival Lafayette November 22 at Yankee Stadium in New York.

Ticket sales began last November with the excitement and anticipation surrounding this game leading to extraordinary response from season ticket holders, Asa Packer level donors, alumni, students and faculty/staff. As a result all of the nearly 28,000 tickets allocated to Lehigh from November through Monday, June 23 have been sold or allotted. There are no more tickets available for purchase through Lehigh.

"The response to this milestone game is a real tribute to the Lehigh and Lafayette communities," explained Lehigh Goodman Dean of Athletics Joe Sterrett '76. "Both institutions graduate students who are passionate about their experiences and friendships and who appreciate the tradition of this annual game as a time to come together and celebrate the value of their education and the relationships they developed. We look forward to sharing the special character of this game, our schools and our scholar-athletes with the broader audience generated by playing the game in New York at an iconic sports site."

As of Wednesday morning, Lehigh has sold or allotted 27,870 tickets to the game. Initial sales in November were so strong that Lehigh opened a waiting list, which resulted in online requests for nearly 15,000 tickets – enough to fill the permanent seating in Lehigh's Goodman Stadium.

After exhausting its initial allotment for season ticket holders, alumni, faculty and staff last November, Lehigh opened up sales to undergraduate and graduate students (including the incoming class of 2018) in the spring, with more than 4,000 students set to be in Yankee Stadium on game day.

People who completed Lehigh's survey between November 22 and June 20 were placed on a waiting list and had an opportunity to purchase the remainder of Lehigh's allotment on June 23. The final 3,000 tickets were sold or allocated in a mere 24 minutes.

The seating capacity for Yankee Stadium for football is projected to be 48,100. In addition to the ticket allocations for Lehigh and Lafayette, the Yankees organization has also allocated tickets to corporate affiliates and staff associated with the stadium and team operations.

Lafayette also does not have any tickets available for public sale.

Kickoff for the 150th Lehigh-Lafayette game is set for just after 3:30 p.m. on November 22. For fans that were unable to obtain tickets, national television coverage plans will be unveiled in the near future.

Fans are encouraged to continue to visit Lehighsports.com/Rivalry150 in the weeks leading up to the game for information on the contest plus new exclusive Lehigh content on the rivalry.

New rivalry-related content includes:

The Rivalry: A LFN Look Back: Lehigh Athletics has partnered with Charles Burton '92, owner of the popular Lehigh Football Nation blog to provide a historical perspective on The Rivalry. Burton has been blogging about Lehigh football and The Rivalry for more than a decade and is currently working on a book on the history of The Rivalry.

Uniforms through the years: A historical look back at Lehigh's football uniforms throughout the years.

Throwback Thursday: A social media based-campaign that will offer a nostalgic look back at The Rivalry.

Experience the Rivalry: Beginning in July, fans will be able to share their Rivalry stories with Lehighsports.com. The program will be anchored with seven oral history videos that feature various Lehigh alumni sharing their Rivalry experience. Each video will share a unique perspective or theme that serve as the basis for fans to share their stories.

Spirit Video Contest: Coming in August, fans will have an opportunity to show their Lehigh spirit in a video with a chance to have it air at Yankee Stadium on game day. Complete details will be unveiled in August.

In addition to the football game on November 22, Lehigh University is promoting a number of shoulder events in New York City surrounding the game and is encouraging all fans who will be attending the game to take full advantage of the various events planned for the weekend beginning Thursday November 20 and running through Saturday's game.

Additionally, alumni and fans without game tickets are beginning to organize gatherings at several New York City locations for television viewing parties.

Complete information on all the weekend events surrounding the game, including the Lehigh-sponsored telecast parties in New York City can be found HERE.

Lehigh football coach Andy Coen will be main speaker at LV Scholar-Athlete Dinner

Lehigh University football coach Andy Coen will be the main speaker when the National Football Foundation and College Hall of Fame Lehigh Valley Chapter holds its 54th annual Scholar-Athlete banquet on Sunday March 2, 2014 at 4:30 pm at the Northampton Community Center.

Coen, who has guided Lehigh to a 59-33 record over eight seasons and has won or shared three Patriot League titles, is following in the footsteps of last year's headline speaker Bill O'Brien, the former Penn State coach now in charge of the Texans.

Other speakers over the years have included the late Joe Paterno and Woody Hayes, Johnny Majors, Bobby Bowden, George Welsh, Jackie Sherrill, Lloyd Carr and Dick Vermeil.

The night features the honoring of 34 high school scholar-athletes and also the scholar-athletes from the six local college football programs (East Stroudsburg, Kutztown, Muhlenberg, Moravian, Lehigh and Lafayette).

Last year's chapter scholar-athlete was Caleb Johnson of Northern Lehigh, who is now at Harvard.

The ticket price is $30. Contact Herb Barrall at 484-515-6530 by February 13.

Lehigh places six on Patriot League all-conference football first team; Lippincott, Kent make 2nd team

Fordham swept the big awards, getting the offensive player (quarterback Michael Nebrich) and defensive player (linebacker Stephen Hodge) of the year as well as the coach of the year (Joe Moorhead). And Holy Cross freshman quarterback Peter Pujals was named rookie of the year.

But Lehigh was well-represented on the Patriot League All-Star team that was released on Tuesday morning with six first-teamers and three second-team selections. Among the second-teamers was senior center Matt Lippincott from Wilson. Also Nazareth graduate Kris Kent, a junior linebacker at Colgate, made the second-team.

Lafayette rolls over Lehigh 50-28, wins league title and NCAA playoff berth

Lafayette dominated Lehigh in just about every category and then scored the game's final 14 points on two big plays in the fourth quarter to put away a 50-28 victory on Saturday in the 149th meeting of college football's most-played rivalry before 16,129 at Goodman Stadium.

Lafayette not only won the game, but clinched the Patriot League title and the automatic berth to the NCAA FCS tournament.

Lafayette improved to 5-6 overall, 4-1 in the league.

Lehigh finished 8-3, 3-2 in the league.

It's the first time the Leopards have won an outright Patriot League title since 1994 and the first time they scored 50 points against Lehigh since 1994.

Freshman quarterback Drew Reed was named the game's MVP after throwing for a career 378 yards. He completed 20 of 27 passes.

He is the first Lafayette freshman to win the MVP since running back Tom Costello won the honor in 1988.

Lehigh moves up in national polls; Lehigh-Lafayette game featured on TV show

Lehigh's 31-14 win over Colgate again elevated the Mountain Hawks in the national polls.

Lehigh moved up to No. 15 in the coaches poll from No. 17 and climbed from No. 20 to No. 17 in The Sports Network poll.

Also, the 149th edition of college football's most-played rivalry between Lehigh and Lafayette will be featured on this week's "Calling All Sports" TV show. Paul Reinhard joins me for the entire show and our guests are Lehigh's Lee Kurfis and Lafayette's Mark Ross, both outstanding senior receivers.

The show can be seen at 8 p.m. Monday on Service Electric TV2 and is shown twice on RCN-4 at 6 p.m. Tuesday and at 5:30 on Thursday.

Below are the two national polls featuring Lehigh starting with the coaches poll last:

Sherman earns the Patriot League Offensive Player of the Week nod for the second straight time after once again putting up a career-best effort in a must-win for the Mountain Hawks. He carried 27 times for a career-high 184 yards and a touchdown and also caught two passes for 40 yards to notch a career-high 224 all-purpose yards in a 31-14 win at Colgate. The victory prevented the Raiders from claiming the Patriot League title and set up a matchup for the outright crown and FCS playoff berth when the Mountain Hawks host Lafayette on Saturday. Sherman had his fourth 100-yard rushing game this season, with 114 yards coming in the first half as Lehigh took a 17-7 lead. He lost yardage just once on the 27 attempts.

NICK SHAFNISKY, LEHIGH Fr., QB, 6-1, 200; Whitehall, Pa./Whitehall

Shafnisky led Lehigh to a second straight critical win by completing 11-of-21 passes for 134 yards and two touchdowns and rushing for 26 yards in the Mountain Hawks’ 31-14 victory at Colgate on Saturday. He threw both of his touchdown passes to Lee Kurfis, putting Lehigh up 14-7 in the second quarter and 24-7 in the third as the Mountain Hawks rallied from an early deficit. Shafnisky was 5-of-7 for 105 yards and a touchdown in the second half as Lehigh preserved the lead. He became the first freshman to start at quarterback for Lehigh since Phil Stambaugh in 1996, and earns a second straight Rookie of the Week award.

In the first of what many area football fans hope will be several honors to come his way over the next three years, Lehigh quarterback Nick Shafnisky was named the Patriot League's Rookie of the Week for his performance in Saturday's 34-20 win over Holy Cross at Goodman Stadium.

Shafnisky, the freshman from Whitehall, completed 11 of 12 passes for 136 yards and two scores while also running 13 times for 55 and a score.

At one point, he led Lehigh (7-2, 2-1) on three consecutive scoring drives in his first extended stretch at quarterback.

Shafnisky also appeared briefly at the end of the 48-10 loss to Bucknell on Oct. 26.

For the season, he is 11 for 14 passing with one interception. He has carried 16 times for 83 yards, an average of 5.2 yards per carry.

In addition, Shafnisky's teammate, Keith Sherman, was named the league's offensive player of the week.

The senior from Bucksport, S.C. carried 20 times for 166 yards and a career-long 60-yard score that put the Mountain Hawks up 13-7 in the second quarter. Both the carries and yardage marks set career highs. Sherman also caught two passes, both going for touchdowns, for 30 yards. The first came just before halftime to give Lehigh a 27-13 lead, and the second put the Mountain Hawks up 34-13 in the third quarter.

Sherman had his third 100-yard rushing game of the season, with five carries for 38 yards as Lehigh killed the clock on its final drive. He has 739 rushing yards for the season, and is averaging 5.6 yards per carry.

The coveted freshman from Whitehall got his first full opportunity to play on Saturday in the Mountain Hawks' must-win game against visiting Holy Cross and the former Zephyrs star delivered. Big time.

He threw for two touchdowns and ran for another as Lehigh (7-2, 2-1) got a most-needed victory.

The Mountain Hawks stayed alive for a share of the Patriot League title and the automatic NCAA FCS playoff berth with two games to play.

Junior Matt McHale started at quarterback for Lehigh in place of injured Brandon Bialkowski and delivered a touchdown on his first drive, but the offense sputtered from there and Shafnisky entered the game with just under 13 minutes left in the first half.

On his first play, he handed off to Keith Sherman who ran 60 yards for a TD.

Shafnisky would help Lehigh cash in for touchdowns on its next three possessions. He ran for a 5-yard TD and connected twice for Sherman on TD tosses.

The rest of the day belonged to a Lehigh defense, which got two turnovers. Those were the first two turnovers earned by the defense since the Princeon on Sept. 21.

Shafnisky finished with 13 carries for 55 yards and was 11-of-12 passing for 136 yards.

Sherman also had one of his best days, running for 166 yards on 20 carries.

Lehigh is back in action at Colgate next Saturday and returns home for the 149th meeting with Lafayette on Nov. 23.

Lehigh confirms QB Brandon Bialkowski is out for the rest of the season

Lehigh football coach Andy Coen has confirmed that senior quarterback Brandon Bialkowski suffered a fractured collarbone in the third quarter of Saturday's game against Bucknell and will miss the remainder of the season.

Although Coen wouldn't make the official announcement yet, it is expected that junior Matt McHale will become the starter when the Mountain Hawks play Holy Cross on Nov. 9 at Goodman Stadium. Nick Shafnisky, the freshman from Whitehall, moves up to No. 2 on the depth chart.

Coen said it was a tough blow for his team to absorb, but felt bad most of all for Bialkowski.

"It's absolutely disappointing for him, a kid who did all the right things and learned the system and waited for his turn," Coen said. "When he got his turn, he certainly took advantage of it. He's not only a great example for his teammates, but to kids playing football all over the place.

"This is a world where if you're not playing as a freshman or sophomore, you're unhappy. This is a guy who waited his turn behind some good players [previous starters Chris Lum and Mike Colvin] and took advantage of it and put his team in a position where it could win a championship."

Lehigh is 6-2 overall, 1-1 in the Patriot League. If the Mountain Hawks defeat Holy Cross, Colgate and Lafayette in November, they would still be league champs and return to the NCAA FCS playoffs.

However, that stuff is far from being at the forefront at this point. The team has to come to grips with losing one of the biggest bright spots of the season to date.

Bialkowski, a product of Gilbert, Ariz., is 216 for 337 passing for 2,647 yards with 10 interceptions and 18 touchdowns.

He entered the Bucknell game second in the FCS in passing yards game (353.3) and third in completions per game and total passing yards. He was twice named the Patriot League offensive player of the week and he set a school single-game record by completing 42 passes in 57 attempts at Princeton on Sept 21. His 430 yards passing against the Tigers was the sixth highest single-game total in school history. He narrowly missed his seventh straight 300-yard passing game when he finished with 298 against Georgetown on Oct. 19.

He was taken out of the game with Lehigh enjoying a big lead and was replaced by McHale.

McHale, a 6-foot-3, 220-pound junior from Madison, N.J., relieved Bialkowski at Bucknell and completed 7 of 13 passes for 57 yards and had one interception. McHale also carried seven times for 26 yards.

Shafnisky had one series at Bucknell, running three times for 28 yards, but was 0-for-2 on two pass attempts with an interception.

"The good thing now is we have a bye and we've got three quarterbacks healthy in the program and we'll see who the best one is," Coen said. "Matt had been the backup all year. He played two or three drives against Georgetown and a quarter-and-a-half at Bucknell. He did do some good things, and some other things that he can improve upon.

"The quarterback position is always magnified, but we've had a lot of guys get hurt this year and other guys have stepped up. Now the guy who will play quarterback next Saturday has to step up and do his part. Both [McHale and Shafnisky] have to be ready to play. We haven't had a chance to sit down as a staff and evaluate everything yet."

Coen said the offense won't change.

"The kids who play have to go out there and run our system," Coen said. "We can't change it."

Coen said he hoped his team would rally around the unfortunate situation.

"We met on Sunday as a team and what happened on Saturday was disheartening," Coen said. "We need really to focus on preparing ourselves the right way. Something got missed in the process on Saturday. We clearly weren't ready to play an inspired football team on Saturday and that falls on my shoulders. That's what happens [48-10] when you're not ready."

A Patriot League football shocker: Bucknell 48, Lehigh 10

Bucknell has suffered many lopsided losses to Lehigh over the past 15 years.

But on Saturday, the Bison delivered a painful payback to the Mountain Hawks.

In one of the most startling, and disappointing, outcomes for the Lehigh in several seasons, the No. 15 ranked Mountain Hawks were routed by Bucknell 48-10 on what proved to be a most happy Homecoming at Christy Mathewson-Memorial Stadium in Lewisburg.

Lehigh fumbled the opening kickoff and it was all downhill from there for the Mountain Hawks, who fell to 6-2 overall, 1-1 in the Patriot League.

What might have been an enjoyable bye week will now turn into 14 days of misery until Lehigh returns to action on Nov. 9 when it hosts Holy Cross at Goodman Stadium.

It was Bucknell's most lopsided win over anyone since the Bison rolled over Towson 51-10 on Oct. 6 in 2001.

It also tied a record for Bucknell points scored in 76 previous meetings. The Bison also scored 48 in 1954, but that was a 48-46 thriller.

Lehigh had won 15 straight in the series and had outscored the Bison by an average of 36 to 12 in the streak.

But this time, the Bison flipped the script. Quarterback Brandon Wesley completed 16 of 21 passes for 213 yards. CJ Williams ran for 154 yards and three TDs.

Three things to look for in today's Lehigh-Georgetown game

Lehigh is finally back at home for the first time in three weeks and just the second time in six weeks.

The nationally-ranked Mountain Hawks, No. 16 and 18 in the FCS polls, finally open league play (at least league games that count) against Georgetown.

Lehigh has dominated this series, winning 12 games since the Hoyas joined the league in 2001, and most of the games have been lopsided.

But this Lehigh team, for whatever reason, doesn't dominate anyone. The Mountain Hawks played down to the competition last Saturday in a 24-10 win over Columbia.

They need to use these two weeks against Georgetown and Bucknell, who are a combined 2-9, to get everything in sync for what I consider to be the Big Three -- the games against Holy Cross, Colgate and Lafayette in November that will determine the league championship and the automatic bid for the NCAA tournament.

Three things to look for today:

1. The Lehigh defense to rise up and put a lot of pressure on Georgetown, which has allowed 18 sacks in three games. Look for locals Matt Laub (Parkland) and Noah Robb (Central Catholic) to possibly get in the act. And the increased pressure might produce some turnovers, which have been hard to come by for Lehigh so far this season. The Mountain Hawks have had just six takeaways in six games and have a minus-6 turnover margin.

2. The Mountain Hawks lead the Patriot League in passing offense with 366.5 yards per game and have the nation's leading receiver in Lee Kurfis. However, when the weather gets cold and the field has the potential to get sloppy next month, a running game and offensive balance will be keys. So look for Lehigh to try hard to get its running game going today. It managed just 120 yards against Columbia last week, but Georgetown has one of the worst rush defenses in the league -- allowing 204 yards per game.

3. Lehigh should go for the jugular and see if it can put away an opponent without much stress. The Mountain Hawks have yet to have any breathing room all season and it would be nice to be up by three or four touchdowns in the fourth quarter so that they can play some of the younger guys and get them some experience. What Lehigh can't do is play down to the level of the opponent again and be overconfident. As head coach Andy Coen said the other day, this team is simply not talented enough to take series and quarters off. If Lehigh gets complacent and keeps Georgetown around, the Mountain Hawks will be playing with fire and could get burned.

Here's the preview capsule that ran in the print editions of Saturday's Morning Call:

The skinny: After back-to-back trips to New York City, the Mountain Hawks are back at home for just the second time in six weeks and are happy to be getting into their Big Five – the five Patriot League games that count in the standings. Lehigh didn’t play particularly well on offense at Columbia last week and will look to get back in sync while continuing to improve on defense. Lee Kurfis continues to be a focal point. The senior WR is tops in FCS football in both receptions and receiving yards. The Mountain Hawks have dominated this series, outscoring the Hoyas by an average of 38-10 over the last 12 years. But Lehigh struggled against the Hoyas on the road in both 2010 and 2012 and will look to put them away early this time.

Despite a combined 7-22 record, all five foes left for Lehigh cause concern

Lehigh begins its Patriot League schedule — at least the portion that counts in the standings — on Saturday when it welcomes Georgetown to Goodman Stadium.

Lafayette has played Bucknell, but still has five Patriot League games remaining, including the one that won’t count in the standings against Fordham.

Everybody, except Bucknell, will have at least one game in the Lehigh Valley in the next month.

So how does the league shape up entering the stretch run?

On paper, it looks a little ragged.

Other than Fordham, which is off to a 7-0 start for the first time since 1930, and Lehigh, which is 5-1 and ranked in the national FCS polls (16th and 18th) for the 39th straight week, no one has a winning record.

In fact, only Holy Cross has more than one win.

Yet, Mountain Hawks coach Andy Coen said that the records — a combined 7-22 for the five teams Lehigh still has to play — can be deceiving.

“If you look at the overall records of teams, we are 37-7 over the last four years and the next closest team in terms of wins has 21, and yet we haven’t won every championship,” Coen said. “So it comes down to the league games and hitting your stride at the right time and that’s what Colgate did a year ago driven largely by the play of their quarterback [Gavin McCarney].

“You throw the records out when you get into the league, you really do, because everybody’s going to get better. The parity in this league, thanks to the recruiting, makes for close games. The teams and the talent level is so close. Now maybe Georgetown, which hasn’t gotten on the scholarship train yet, has possibly fallen behind a little bit. But everybody is bunched together fairly close.”

Defending league champ and NCAA tourney rep Colgate is perhaps the biggest surprise at 1-5, but a lot of that can be attributed to a quality nonleague schedule.

McCarney missed last week’s game against Stony Brook with an injury. The Raiders still lead the league in rushing offense with over 200 yards per game and figure to be formidable down the stretch.

Holy Cross (3-4) presents intrigue thanks to freshman quarterback Pete Pujals, who accounted for 378 yards and six touchdowns in the Crusaders’ 51-27 win over Bucknell last week. He completed 19 of 29 passes for 280 yards and three TDs and ran for 80 yards and three more scores.

Whitehall grad Tyler Artim, a junior, has 19 catches for 222 yards and two touchdowns for Holy Cross.

Bucknell’s forte has been its defense against the run. The Bison are allowing just 123.8 yards per game on the ground.

Georgetown, while just 1-5 overall and coming off a 34-12 loss to Fordham, can find some positives in outscoring the Rams 12-6 in the second half. Freshman quarterback Tim Barnes came off the bench in the second quarter and had a solid collegiate debut by completing 16 of 31 passes for 124 yards.

Certainly, Lehigh, which had to scrap, claw and hold its breath for a 17-14 win over the Hoyas last year in Washington, aren’t taking anything for granted.

“We’ve got five league games left and they’re all championship games,” Coen said. “There’s no margin for error here, really. We learned that last year. You’ve got to think that whoever wins the league is going to be undefeated. So, you’ve got to win every game if you want to hold your own destiny.”

PATRIOT LEAGUE STANDINGS

Team, PL, All, PF, PA

Holy Cross, 1-0, 3-4, 206, 204

Lafayette, 1-0, 1-4, 108, 136

Lehigh, 0-0, 5-1, 200, 186

Colgate, 0-0, 1-5, 136, 214

Georgetown, 0-0, 1-5, 127, 206

Bucknell, 0-2, 1-4, 74, 157

#Fordham, 0-0, 7-0, 284, 152

#: Ineligible for Patriot League title and games don’t count in the league standings

Bad day in the Big Apple: Lehigh routed by Fordham 52-34; Spadola cut by Jets

The magic formula that Lehigh had used to rally for four straight wins to start the season vanished on Saturday in the Bronx.

Instead, Fordham had all of the late thunder.

Fordham, leading only 31-28 with 2:58 left in the third quarter, struck for 21 unanswered points and pulled away to a 52-34 win over Lehigh in a battle of unbeaten and nationally-ranked teams at packed Jack Coffey Field.

It was Lehigh's first regular-season road loss since falling at New Hampshire early in the 2010 season, snapping a 16-game streak.

Fordham, ranked No. 12/13 in the polls and owning wins over Villanova and Temple, lived up to its billing.

The Rams racked up 630 yards in total offense, 246 rushing.

Mike Nebrich, a national player of the year candidate, completed 26 of 36 passes for 384 yards and four touchdowns -- three of them to Sam Ajala.

To no one's surprise, Lehigh senior quarterback Brandon Bialkowski has won the Patriot League's Offensive Player of the Week award for the second time this season.

Bialkowski (seen below right against Princeton) led Lehigh to a 34-27 comeback win over No. 7/10 New Hampshire on Saturday. He completed 31-of-52 passes for 359 yards and two touchdowns, including the go-ahead score on a 15-yard strike to Derek Knott with 12:19 to play.

Bialkowski has thrown for at least 300 yards and two touchdowns in all four games this season, and stands in the top five nationally in passing yards, completions and total offense per game. He completed passes to seven different receivers, with both Lee Kurfis and Sergio Fernandez-Soto going over 100 yards. Bialkowski is the first Lehigh quarterback since Chris Lum (2011) to throw for 300 yards or more in four consecutive games.

In addition, Lehigh placed two players on the honorable mention list.

Senior defensive back Tyler Ward had nine tackles, including one for a loss, and three pass breakups against New Hamsphire.

The game-winning TD, with 10:02 left, came just two plays after a fluke play kept alive the Lehigh drive.

Lehigh had a punt blocked, but the ball was plucked out of the air by fullback Zach Hayden and run 37 yards for a first down. The Bialkowski-to-Kurfis pass came soon after and the rest of the game became a defensive struggled with Lehigh holding on.

(Here's the first half recap)

Lehigh continued to get some big plays from quarterback Brandon Bialkowski and wide receiver Lee Kurfis and scored a pair of second-quarter touchdowns, but Monmouth used three Mountain Hawks turnovers to stay close at halftime on Saturday at Kessler Field in W. Long Branch, NJ.

It was 14-10 Lehigh at intermission.

Monmouth (0-2) opened the scoring in the first quarter when Bialkowski was sacked, fumbled and Clark Coe grabbed the loose ball and ran 42 yards for a touchdown.

Lehigh came back with two five-play scoring drives in the second quarter. The first one, covering 86 yards, resulted in a 55-yard strike from Bialkowski to Kurfis.

The second one covered 80 yards, featured a 41-yard completion to Kurfis, and ended with a 6-yard TD run by Sean Farrell.

Lehigh had another drive deep into Monmouth territory end on a Sergio Fernandez-Soto fumble.

And just before halftime, the Mountain Hawks were on the move again, but Bialkowski was hit as he threw and was intercepted for the third time in two weeks.

Kurfis, the Patriot League offensive player of the week after he had seven catches for 222 yards last week in the double-overtime win over Central Connecticut State, has six catches for 130 yards in the first half.

Keith Sherman has rushed for 70 yards on eight carries and Lehigh (1-0) has outgained Monmouth 326 yards to 219, but the margin remains just four points.

Colgate narrowly edges Lehigh as preseason favorite in Patriot League football

The preseason luncheon is coming up later this morning, but the Patriot League preseason football poll is out and Colgate is expected to repeat as league champion by a narrow margin over Lehigh, which is coming off a 10-1 season and has gone 31-6 over the last three seasons.

Locals in Lehigh football program are shining academically

This came out yesterday, but I wanted to salute Josh Parris (Palisades), Noah Robb (Central Catholic), Billy Boyko (Northampton) and the rest of the members of the Lehigh football program who made the Patriot League Academic Honor Roll for the 2012 season. There were 24 Mountain Hawks in all and Capital One Academic All-American Zach Barket headed the list.

Special kudos to Robb, a freshman, who posted the top GPA among the Mountain Hawks in the fall semester, with a 3.94. Amazing.

Can't say enough about these kids because the demands of the football program alone would seem to make it tough to keep up academically. Yet, they flourish on the field and in the classroom.

To be eligible for the honor roll, student-athletes must maintain a 3.2 GPA and be listed on the team roster.

A total of 169 Patriot League football student-athletes were named to the Academic Honor Roll, including 13 members of the Academic All-Patriot League football team. Colgate wide receiver Chris Looney was voted the league’s Scholar-Athlete of the Year for football last November.

And Lafayette had its share of outstanding Academic Honor recipients as well, headed by junior Brad Bormann, who posted a perfect. 4.0 GPA. We're listing their student-athletes below as well:

Lehigh graduate being recommended to become Pottsville's head football coach

The Pottsville Republican is reporting that Tom McGeoy, an all-league linebacker at Lehigh University from 2000-03, will be recommended to the school board tonight to become the next head football coach at Pottsville.

McGeoy, a 2000 Pottsville grad, has been coaching on the Crimson Tide staff for the last eight seasons, directing the linebackers for the last four years. He is a middle school teacher in the district.

At Lehigh, McGeoy played for current Ball State head coach Pete Lembo and for current Holy Cross head coach Tom Gilmore, who was then Lehigh's defensive coordinator.

McGeoy led Lehigh in tackles in 2003 and was invited to participate in a I-AA all-star game after the season.

Pending board approval, he would replace Kevin Keating, his high school coach.

Keating was not rehired after a 2-8 season in 2012.

Keating, according to the Republican, compiled a 166-110-7 record in 24 years over two stints at Pottsville, including a 72-48 mark since being re-hired prior to the 2003 season.

Over the past 10 seasons, Pottsville reached the postseason eight times and made it to three District 11 3A championship games and also went to the 3A state title game in both 2005 and 2006.

McGeoy has overcome adversity in his life.

When he was a high school junior in 1999, he lost his younger brother, Joey, in a car accident.

"It made me realize that anything can happen at any time and there are lot more important things in life than football," McGeoy said in a 2003 Morning Call feature on him. "It helped me to better deal with things. It helped me to mature. It was tough, but I learned from it and grew from it. Hopefully, I go out there and make him proud."

Lehigh players collect Patriot League Player of the Week honors

They'd certainly trade any honors in for a chance to play another game, but Lehigh quarterback Michael Colvin and linebacker Sam Loughery made the final games of their career count on Saturday.

They both excelled in the 38-21 win over Lafayette and were honored by the Patriot League today. The details from a league release:

Patriot League Weekly Awards (Nov. 17)

Offensive Player of the Week

Mike Colvin, QB, Lehigh Sr., 6-3, 230 (Morristown, N.J./Morristown)

Colvin won game MVP honors of the Lehigh-Lafayette contest by completing 25-of-41 passes for 362 yards and four touchdowns and rushing for 82 yards and a score in a 38-21 comeback win over the Leopards on Saturday. He set a career-high for rushing yardage and total offense, and tied his career high for passing yards and touchdowns. Colvin was 9-of-16 for 145 yards and two touchdowns in the second half as Lehigh outscored Lafayette 21-0 after intermission. Colvin led Lehigh to a 10-1 record, its third-straight 10-win season. He is named Patriot League Offensive Player of the Week for the second time.

Loughery filled the stat sheet with 10 tackles, 0.5 sacks, two tackles for loss and an interception in Lehigh’s 38-21 win over Lafayette on Saturday. The interception came in the fourth quarter to help seal the win for the Mountain Hawks. Lehigh held Lafayette scoreless and to just 176 yards of total offense after the first quarter. Loughery is named Patriot League Defensive Player of the Week for the first time.

Kent has 76 tackles, including 3.5 sacks and an interception. Orlando has nine tackles and an interception and Cason has 32 receptions for 512 yards.

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Villanova (8-3) will also be on the road, traveling to Long Island to take on Stony Brook (9-2) at 3 p.m. Saturday.

The winner takes on third-seeded and second-ranked Montana State (10-1) in the second round.

The Wildcats closed out the regular season with a 41-10 win at Delaware on Saturday, a victory which gave Villanova a share of the CAA title with New Hampshire, Towson and Richmond.

Villanova is making its 10th playoff appearance since 1989 and won the 2009 national title.

The local flavor on the Wildcats roster includes freshman Kevin Gulyas from Central Catholic and sophomore Chris Polony from Whitehall. Gulyas has played in six games and has three catches for 34 yards. Polony has played in five games and has completed six of 13 passes for a touchdown and 56 yards.

Former Whitehall head coach Tony Trisciani is the team's defensive backs coach.

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The University of New Hampshire (8-3) is back in the playoffs and will have a bye before traveling to Wofford (8-3) on Dec, 1 for a second-round game.

UNH is 8-3, but coming off a lopsided 64-35 loss to Towson in its regular season finale. It was the second time this season the Wildcats have allowed 64 points in a game. They also surrendered 64 to Old Dominion in a much-talked about 64-61 loss back in September that set numerous offensive records.

UNH features Shane and Tad McNeely from Central Catholic, Danny Riley from Northampton, Mike Coccia from Freedom and Joey Orlando from Liberty.

Orlando, the only senior of the group, has 45 catches for 533 yards and five touchdowns.

Shane McNeely has 27 tackles, including a sack and 2.5 tackles for losses.

10-1 record wasn't good enough for Lehigh to get playoff berth

Despite going 10-1 this year and winning NCAA FCS playoff games on the road each of the past two years, and despite being nationally-ranked all season, Lehigh was snubbed by the NCAA FCS selection committee today.

The 20-team field for this year's NCAA tournament was announced on ESPNU on Sunday afternoon and Lehigh, despite being ranked No. 13 in one of two national FCS polls, didn't receive one of the 10 at-large bids.

The automatic bid for winning the Patriot League went to Colgate by virtue of last week's 35-24 win over the Mountain Hawks.

It was Lehigh's lone loss and just their second regular-season loss in the past two years.

Patriot League champ Colgate, by the way, didn't get a home game or a bye. The Raiders will travel to Wagner on Staten Island for a noon game on Saturday.

Villanova, which features former Central Catholic standout Kevin Guylas as well as ex-Whitehall quarterback Chris Polony and has ex-Zephyrs coach Tony Trisciani on its staff, was one of three Colonial Athletic Association teams to make the 20-team field and will play at Stony Brook at 3 p.m. Saturday.

This marks the second time a Patriot League team went 10-1 and didn't receive a playoff berth.

In the league's first season as an automatic bid conference in 1997, Bucknell finished 10-1 with its only loss to Colgate on the final day of the regular season and did not earn a postseason berth. The only other time a Patriot League team went 10-1 and did not win the automatic playoff berth was in 1999, when Lehigh did get in as an at-large. The Mountain Hawks also lost to Colgate that season.

Lehigh's late-game magic ends, Colgate rallies for 35-24 win and Patriot League title

Ahead 14-0 early in the second quarter and 24-14 at halftime, Lehigh's offense was held scoreless in the second half and Colgate rallied past the Mountain Hawks for a 35-24 win at Goodman Stadium before a crowd of slightly more than 8,000.

Mike Colvin threw a pair of second-half interceptions and Colgate's offense was nearly unstoppable in scoring three second-half touchdowns.

The disappointing loss ended Lehigh's 18-game regular season win streak, the longest in the country. It also snapped an 18-game win streak against Patriot League opponents.

It will certainly knock the Mountain Hawks way down in the national rankings. They came in ranked No. 5 in one poll and No. 8 in the other.

Lehigh (9-1) must defeat Lafayette next Saturday in Easton to have any chance of earning a wild-card berth into the NCAA FCS tournament that will start in two weeks.

Lehigh leads Colgate 24-14 at halftime of Patriot League title game

Lehigh has held Colgate's vaunted offense to 150 yards and two touchdowns in the first half and holds a 24-14 lead over the Raiders at Goodman Stadium in the game that will determine the Patriot League championship and the automatic berth in the NCAA tournament.

Colgate is coming off a 65-41 win over Lafayette in which the Raiders set Patriot League records for rushing yardage (531) and total offense (755).

But Lehigh, as head coach Andy Coen hoped, has made Colgate work for everything.

It took Lehigh just 39 seconds to score on its first possession as one play after Zach Hayden hauled in a 52-yard completion from Mike Colvin to the Colgate 2, Zach Barket scored.

Lehigh extended the lead to 14-0 early in the second quarter when Keith Sherman scored on a 1-yard run.

Colgate answered with a Jordan McCord TD run, but Lehigh came right back with a 65-yard pass from Colvin to Lee Kurfis to set up a 4-yard TD pass from Colvin to Tyler Coyle.

Colgate took advantage of a failed onside kick attempt by Lehugh to go 53 yards for another touchdown, but Lehigh closed the first half with a 47-yard drive that resulted in Jake Peery's 43-yard field goal on the final play of the first half.

Lehigh-Colgate: Five things to watch for in the game of the year

I don't know how many people will be there today at Goodman Stadium. There should be at least 10,000, but because there are makeup classes scheduled from last week's storm-related cancellations, there probably won't be.

And that's a shame because I don't know we'll ever have another scenario where the No. 5 ranked team in the country, a team that has won 18 straight regular-season games and is the only unbeaten team left in the nation in its classification, is playing such a big game.

Maybe Lehigh will get a playoff game in a couple of weeks, but for now, this is as good as it gets -- Lehigh vs. Colgate.

Yes, Lehigh-Lafayette is next week and that's still one of the most special events in Lehigh Valley sports.

But Lehigh needs to win today to win a third straight league championship and clinch a third consecutive NCAA playoff berth.

In some regards, it's the unstoppable force against the immovable object. Colgate is tops in the league in scoring offense and total offense. Lehigh is No. 1 in scoring defense and total defense.

However, the consensus is that Lehigh will have to win this one with its offense, and might possibly be forced to put up its largest total of the season, even more than the 42 it had against Bucknell on Oct. 20.

This figures to be an old-fashioned shootout. It should be fun.

Here are five things to look for:

1. Lehigh must be discplined against Colgate's option attack and force the Raiders into third-and-long situations. The Mountain Hawks are among the league's best defenses on third downs, thanks in large part to 29 sacks. But Colgate's offense seldom saw a third down situation against Lafayette.

2. Lehigh must at least force Colgate to settle for some field goals and get some turnovers. The Mountain Hawks have only had one takeaway in the last two games and 14 in nine games. They are a minus-7 in turnover ratio. That needs to be a positive today.

3. Any field goal attempts taken by the Mountain Hawks -- and obviously, all PATs as well -- must be successful. Jake Peery missed a PAT and field goal attempt at Holy Cross. Peery does have a game-winning FG this season, but is only 5-for-9 from 3-point range and doesn't have a kick over 29 yards.

4. Mike Colvin must play the best game of his career. The senior quarterback has gotten better as the season has progressed and besides throwing the ball well, he is making smarter decisions, at least since the first half at Georgetown on Oct. 13. He is not only going to have to be accurate today, but he can't force things when they are not there. While there will be pressure to score on every possession, a punt is still much better than a turnover.

5. Run the ball. Eagles fans can relate to this. Colgate has had some major trouble stopping the run and Lehigh has the ability to pound away with Zach Barket, Keith Sherman, Rich Sodeke and, of course, Colvin. Lehigh has a big-play passing attack, but can keep the Colgate offense off the field with time-consuming drives that result in points.

And I will give you a 5B.

Lehigh shouldn't get flustered when it gives up some big plays and touchdowns because it's going to happen. The Raiders are going to score. This will not be a shutout. The Mountain Hawks, while never perfect this season, have had a remarkable ability to stay poised and never let things snowball in the other direction. That's how they have won four games by three points or less. Don't be surprised if they make it five today.

Here was the preview capsule that ran in today's print edition of The Morning Call.

*The skinny: Everything is on the line in what should be a special day of football, especially if you like offense. Lehigh has continually lived on the edge this season with four wins by three points or less and has yet to put together a complete game. This is the time to do it because Colgate has been on an offensive roll like few teams ever experience. Lehigh has outscored Colgate 89-39 over the past two years, but this one figures to be close. Turnovers, penalties and kicking game could be pivotal. The team with the ball last may win it.

Five things to watch for in the Lehigh-Holy Cross game

Lehigh plays Holy Cross in a Patriot League football game at 12:30 today in Worcester, Mass.

Unfortunately, or maybe, fortunately, if you don't like my coverage, I will not be there as the huge number of Lehigh Valley-area postponements prompted a major shuffling of assignments. But I will be following along on the Internet for the first three quarters before heading off to the Parkland-Emmaus game

What to look for:

1. Ryan Spadola's return. Head coach Andy Coen was non-commital on Spadola's availability earlier in the week as the All-American receiver tries to bounce back from mono. He was practicing, but it wasn't certain if, or how much, he will play. If Spadola plays it makes a big difference in the Lehigh offense, obviously. The Mountain Hawks should be able to make plays against a Crusaders defense that surrendered 407 yards in the air against Fordham.

2. Offensive consistency. Lehigh's defense is the reason they are the only FCS-level unbeaten left in the country. It's the offense that looks great for three drives in a row, and then wretched for the next three. Part of that has to do with the revolving door up front. But now is the time for the team to put it together, QB Mike Colvin included. This offense is going to have score in the high 30s (at least) to beat Colgate next week and may need an offensive explosion to beat Lafayette as well on Nov. 17. Now is the time to clean things up and get on a three-game roll.

3. A test for the secondary. As stated above, Lehigh's defense has been the difference in almost every game. The Mountain Hawks will be tested today by a Crusaders passing attack that has totaled more than 300 yards twice in the last three weeks and produced six TDs in the air over the past three games. Both Lafayette and Fordham picked off a pair of interceptions, however, in the past two weeks and Lehigh, too, could benefit from a pick or two.

4. Lots of local flavor. Northampton graduate Billy Boyko has had a superb senior season and leads the team in tackles. Look for freshmen Matt Laub (Parkland) and Noah Robb (Central Catholic) to get more time and make more contributions as backup outside linebackers. And, hopefully, even if Spadola returns, sophomore Josh Parris (Palisades) will continue to see a lot of balls thrown his way. Parris had five catches for 114 yards against Bucknell two weeks ago.

5. Andy Coen's 50th win. There was a time when it looked like I had a better chance of becoming president than Andy Coen had of ever winning 50 games at Lehigh. There were a lot of tough losses and a lot of stress and criticism in some of those early years. After his first four seasons, he was looking at a 20-24 record and a restless fan base. But AD Joe Sterrett supported him and Coen stayed the course, got the guys to rally around him, bolstered the coaching staff with the addition of Dave Cecchini and now his team has gone on 29-5 over the last three seasons and won two league titles and two FCS playoff games. If Coen's 50th win comes today, and I think it will, he deserves a hearty congratulations because there's not a more down-to-earth person in local sports than Coen.

:Lehigh moved up from No. 9 to No. 8 in The Sports Network FCS national poll and went from No. 7 to No. 6 in the FCS Coaches Poll.

Also, Lehigh freshman Laquan Lambert who had two blocked punts against Bucknell was named both the Patriot League’s Special Teams Player of the Week and the Sports Network’s National Special Teams Player of the Week.

No. 7/9 ranked Lehigh leads Bucknell 21-6 at halftime

Lehigh blocked four punts -- including one that was returned for a touchdown -- and got a pair of TD passes from Mike Colvin to Lee Kurfis in building a 21-6 halftime lead over Bucknell at Goodman Stadium.

Three things to look for at the Bucknell-Lehigh game

It's part of a tripleheader for me -- radio show, Lehigh and then the end of the CCHS-Nazareth game at Crum Stadium.

The most lengthy part of my day will be at the Lehigh game where the Mountain Hawks, ranked No. 7 and No. 9 in the FCS national polls, will try to get to 8-0 before their bye week. After the bye, it's a three-game rumble through the regular season with Holy Cross, Colgate and Lafayette coming up in November. All three figure to be very challenging games.

Lehigh has dominated the series with Bucknell, winning the last 14 meetings, and most handily.

However, the Mountain Hawks should have learned last week that nothing comes easy for them this year and their margin for error seems to shrink every week. Bucknell may be 1-5, but plays good defense.

If you're going to the game (and it looks like a beautiful day is shaping up after a stormy night), here are three things to look for:

1. LOCAL GUYS TO PLAY A KEY ROLE: Look for Josh Parris, the sophomore from Palisades, to get more balls thrown his way than ever with Ryan Spadola again out, along with Sergio Fernandez-Soto and Jamel Haggins. Also, I am told that Central Catholic product Noah Robb will see a lot of action on defense along with Northampton's Billy Boyko, and Parkland's Matt Laub. Matt Lippincott from Wilson will work on the offensive line.

2. A SHARPER EFFORT FROM MIKE COLVIN: Colvin had those four first-half interceptions against Georgetown and ball security will be of the essence today because the only way the Bison can pull an upset is with turnovers, including some that are brought back for touchdowns. With Colvin and this Lehigh offense, you are reminded of the Eagles. It's never going to be perfect, but you hope for the mistakes to be reduced to a minimum. That's the only way this team is going to get through the regular season unscathed.

3. LOOK FOR COEN TO CLEAR THE BENCH: The injuries have really mounted for Lehigh and the bye week couldn't come at a more opportune time. If this game is a 24-point spread, or more, going into the fourth quarter, expect Andy Coen to not waste any time getting the starters out of there and preserving them for the stretch run. This was not the deepest team to begin with, and the injuries have really thinned out the roster even more. Health has to be a priority today. The problem might be in building the big lead so that the starters get out of there sooner.

Paul Reinhard, Mark Wogenrich put Lafayette and PSU football in spotlight on "Calling All Sports"

Paul Reinhard and Mark Wogenrich guest on this week's "Calling All Sports" television show. Lafayette and Penn State football, both 4-2, will be front and center on the show which can be seen at 8 on Monday night on Service Electric and at 6 Tuesday night on RCN-4.

Other topics include the Yankees, the IndyCar race coming to Pocono and Patriot League football in general.

Coen comments on Lehigh having to play without Spadola

As reported here earlier, Lehigh's All-American wide receiver Ryan Spadola will miss Saturday's game against Georgetown, and possibly several more games while battling mononucleosis.

Lehigh Sports Information Director Steve Lomangino confirmed that Spadola will miss the Georgetown game and would be out "indefinitely."

Coach Andy Coen, reached after getting off the bus in Washington where Lehigh will play on Saturday, said: “It’s certainly not a positive thing for our team, but the next guy just has to step up. Josh Parris [a Palisades grad] will start in Ryan’s place and he has played well and made some big catches for us. I am glad he has some experience under his belt and Lee Kurfis has played well, too. I am sure if you talked to Ryan he’d say it’s not a one-man team. We’ve just got to move forward. It’s not going to change anything we’re doing. We just won’t have an All-American out there playing for us.”

Coen said that Spadola, a senior from Howell, N.J., didn’t feel well in the week leading up to last week’s Columbia game.

“We just didn’t know what it was and he played in the game and he didn’t play poorly,” Coen said.

The medical staff conducted blood tests on Spadola after Saturday’s game and they came back positive for mono.

As for when he might return, Coen said everybody’s different, so it’s hard to put a timetable on it.

“The one thing about Ryan is that he’s a fabulously conditioned athlete,” Coen said. “I am sure he has been playing with it for awhile and it just didn’t manifest itself to this degree. There will be followup tests and we’ll be monitoring his progress. I would doubt he’d play next week against Bucknell and then we have a bye week which could be very advantageous.”

Spadola has caught 34 passes this season for 476 yards, helping No. 10 ranked Lehigh get out to a 6-0 start. He caught his first touchdown pass of the season against Columbia.

Lehigh star Ryan Spadola out for Georgetown game, and possibly much longer

Lehigh's All-American wide receiver Ryan Spadola will miss Saturday's game against Georgetown, and possibly several more games while battling an illness, believed to be mononucleosis.

Mono is commonly described as an infectious disease usually affecting young people, caused by the Epstein-Barr virus and characterized by fever, sore throat, swollen lymph nodes, and fatigue. The symptoms may last for several weeks

Lehigh Sports Information Director Steve Lomangino confirmed that Spadola will miss the Georgetown game and could be out "indefinitely."

Lomangino said the team learned of Spadola's illness on Wednesday after Lehigh's weekly media luncheon was held.

He said coach Andy Coen would have more to say on the receiver's prognosis and status after the Georgetown game.

Palisades grad Josh Parris, a sophomore, will replace Spadola in the Lehigh lineup.

Spadola had caught 34 passes this season for 476 yards, helping No. 10 ranked Lehigh get out to a 6-0 start. He caught his first touchdown pass of the season in last week's game against Columbia.

Spadola, a senior, was the Patriot League's preseason offensive player of the year and received a multitude of postseason accolades after the 2011 season and again entering the 2012 campaign.

The Howell, N.J., native has 209 career receptions for 3,236 yards and 21 touchdowns. He set the Patriot League's single-season record with 1,614 receiving yards along with 96 catches and 11 touchdowns in 2011.

The last time Spadola missed a game was the NCAA FCS-level third round playoff game against North Dakota State last December. He was suspended by the NCAA for one game for re-tweeting a comment on the social media Twitter that contained a racial slur.

Two Lehigh players, including a Central Catholic product, receive Patriot League honors

The Patriot League weekly awards for football were released on Monday and two Lehigh players received accolades.

They were:

Offensive Player of the Week

Mike Colvin, QB, Lehigh Sr., 6-3, 230 (Morristown, N.J./Morristown)

Colvin had his second straight outstanding performance by completing 29-of-38 passes for 296 yards and four touchdowns and also running for a score in Lehigh’s 35-14 win over Columbia on Saturday. He established career highs in completions and touchdown passes while running for a score for the third straight game and fifth in six contests this year. He was 9-for-9 for 84 yards and two touchdowns in the first quarter as Lehigh grabbed a 14-0 lead. Colvin leads the Patriot League and is in the top 15 nationally in both total offense (313.0) and passing yardage (263.0) per game for the season. Colvin is named Patriot League Offensive Player of the Week for the first time.

Robb had two tackles and a quarterback hurry in Lehigh’s 35-14 win over Columbia on Saturday. He saw his first varsity action with time at outside linebacker and as a part of three special teams units. Robb earns his first Patriot League Rookie of the Week award.

Colvin throws 4 TD passes in a 35-14 #Lehigh win over Columbia

Lehigh quarterback Mike Colvin completed 29 of 38 passes for 296 yards and four touchdowns to pace the 10th ranked Mountain Hawks to an impressive 35-14 win over Columbia on Saturday before 5,025 at Goodman Stadium.

Sergio Fernandez-Soto caught eight passes for 120 yards and his first career TD reception.

It was Lehigh's 15th consecutive regular-season win, the longest streak in the country among FCS schools.

Colvin was involved in two other touchdowns. He ran for a Lehigh score and also threw an interception that was returned for a Columbia touchdown. The Lions, playing Lehigh for the first time since 1999, fell to 1-3.

Lehigh is now 6-0 as it begins league play next week at Georgetown. The Mountain Hawks return home to face Bucknell on Oct. 20.

As has been their routine in 2012, Lehigh started fast and took a 14-0 lead over Columbia on two Mike Colvin touchown passes. A bad interception by Colvin returned for a touchdown got Columbia on the board.

But Lehigh and Colvin got back in sync before halftime and extended the lead to 21-7 on a Colvin touchdown run to cap an 80-yard drive.

Lehigh picks up two of the Patriot League's weekly football awards and moves up in poll

Two members of Lehigh's nationally-ranked football team received player-of-the-week awards from the Patriot League on Monday.

Senior placekicker Jake Peery was named the PL's Special Teams Player of the Week after he kicked the game-winning field goal from 22 yards out as time expired to give Lehigh a 34-31 win over Fordham on Saturday. Peery made both of his field goal attempts and all four extra-point kicks. He has now made three straight field goal tries and is 18-for-18 on extra-point kicks this season. Peery is from Baltimore.

Lehigh-Lafayette football rivalry featured in national publication

It probably would have been more appropriate to run in early November, but the Lehigh-Lafayette football rivalry is the cover story in the Sept. 16-22 edition of American Profile, the Parade-like supplement that is included with several weekly newspapers.

The feature story includes several great pictures and insights from former players and longtime fans.

It's good publicity for "The Rivalry" which will have its 148th edition on Nov. 17 at Lafayette.

It's still early, but both teams are undefeated, and right now, it's definitely possible that the regular season finale on College Hill could determine the league champion and who gets the NCAA FCS playoff berth.

Paul Reinhard, the former Morning Call sports editor and current freelancer who covers Lafayette football for us, is a guest on this week's "Calling All Sports" TV show.

Tom Housenick, who covers Patriot League basketball for us, is also a guest on this week's show.

﻿﻿It was a big night for Lehigh and senior linebacker Billy Boyko on Saturday in Lynchburg.

He scored the first collegiate touchdown of his career, a key fourth-quarter interception return that provided the deciding points in the Mountain Hawks' 28-26 come-from-behind win over Liberty.

For that and his well-rounded effort, Boyko has been named the Patriot League Defensive Player of the Week.

Boyko, a Northampton High grad, is a successful drag racer in his spare time.

Here are the details from the league release:

Defensive Player of the Week (Sept. 21-22)

Billy Boyko, LB, Lehigh Sr., 6-2, 235 (Northampton,
Pa./Northampton)

Boyko had 14 tackles, a sack and one huge interception
that he returned 39 yards for a touchdown to lead No. 13 Lehigh to a 28-26
victory at Liberty on Saturday. The tackle total marked a career high and the
interception was a career first, coming in the fourth quarter to give Lehigh a
28-20 lead and serve as the game-winning score. Boyko is named Patriot League
Defensive Player of the Week for the first time.

Lehigh football: The good and not-so-good from Week 2

Three good things to take away from Saturday in New Britain, (see pictures below)

1. LEHIGH IS 2-0 FOR THE FIRST TIME SINCE 2003: It's hard to believe that it has been nine years since Lehigh got out of its first two games unscathed. But it makes you appreciate the fact that this team, while only about two-thirds as good as it can be, has found a way to win two games and the Monmouth victory looks much better now when you see that Monmouth routed Rhode Island 41-7 in its home opener on Saturday. In my 12 seasons on the beat, Lehigh has often had sluggish Septembers. Coen talked about 2010 and how that was an up-and-down September before things clicked in October. The good news for this group is that they're still winning games while trying to smooth out the kinks.